


Anniversary

by caffeinatedmusing



Series: Adventures of an Altmer Rogue [9]
Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Anniversary, Established Relationship, M/M, Married Couple, Tattoos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-10
Updated: 2017-09-10
Packaged: 2018-12-26 05:53:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 885
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12052692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caffeinatedmusing/pseuds/caffeinatedmusing
Summary: Teldryn arrives home late on the eve of an important anniversary. A quick ficlet.





	Anniversary

The lights over the stoop had gone out, guttering in the rising breezes. Summer had come to Skyrim in torrent of roiling thunderheads until the southerly winds continued to push them north past the peaks. Wildflowers bloomed in abundance almost overnight and the evening air now smelled sweet. The moons were rising, full and brilliant in a dark blue dusk still flushed with russet at the horizon.

Fumbling with his keys, Teldryn let himself in, dropped his pack, and kicked his boots off, shoving them to the side. He padded in stocking feet through the second set of doors and into the dining hall where he stopped and listened. 

_Quiet_. The house seemed empty. 

Their daughter should be in bed. But his husband usually greeted him when he got home. Not that he had been all that far away…but the three days collecting a bounty in Falkreath on a group of bandits that had decided to set up on the road into town, plus time spent traveling up to Whiterun so he could go shopping for a birthday gift for Evesa, who turned one year old tomorrow, meant he’d been gone almost a week. He could not believe how much he had missed them both.

Perhaps they were down by the lake. It was late for her to be up, but Evesa loved fireflies and they had both been guilty of humoring her; her round little face lit up and happy baby giggles and babbling ensued whenever the obliging bugs flashed and blinked. 

In the year since they had brought her home, she had become the center of their lives. Toys filled her room. They took turns reading to her before bed every night. She played on a blanket in the garden while they weeded the flower beds. They took her hiking with them, carrying her first in a sling that held her against the chest, and later as she got heavier, on their backs. Ceirin brought her to the Guild sometimes, the basket she slept in as an infant propped on his desk and acting as a paperweight. When she out grew that, her crib took up half the space behind his desk.

The next test had been a few overnight trips with her to see how she handled camping. Once she could sleep most of the night through and they worked out the number of clean diapers to pack, traveling with her became easier. They had begun to range farther away from home, even going so far as to make it to the top of some Nordic ruins, once Ceirin had determined no dragons were using it. 

Evesa had taken to camping so well that they were planning longer trips so long as the weather held. Teldryn had bought a new pack style carrier for her. As young as she still was, this birthday was really more for them to celebrate than for her. He had also picked up a new stuffed animal toy, a cute orange sabercat, though. Just to be fair.

Pushing into the kitchen to get something to eat before he went searching out his errant loved ones, Teldryn startled and yelped in surprise to find Ceirin sitting at the far table, shrouded in shadow. Ceirin startled as well. 

“I didn’t hear you come in?”

“Sorry, I didn’t hear you, either, and I was just…You’re hurt? What happened?” Teldryn spied the cloth Ceirin was holding to his wrist. “Is she alright? What…”

“Relax, everything is fine. She’s asleep. I just, ah…I wanted to show you what I did today but it hurts more than I thought it would.” He laughed, self -deprecating, and set the cloth down. It rustled and crunched with the dry cold sound of crushed ice wraith teeth. 

Teldryn stared, taking Ceirin’s hand and turning it closer to the light. 

“…What have you…?”

“We tried to match the color to yours but I’m not sure how close he got it. I hope that’s ok? This line is for you and this thinner one is for Evesa.”

“Ok? It’s…It..I..How long have you been planning this. Who..?” Teldryn couldn’t stop staring at the two curved lines of purple freshly tattooed around Ceirin’s wrist.

“Thrynn; he picks up some extra coin now and again doing this. And since he’s seen yours, he knew what color I meant when I told him what I wanted.”

Teldryn swallowed against the suspicious stinging in his eyes. 

“You did not have to….” 

“No, but I wanted to. So, that’s to mark one year of being a family. What do you think?”

Teldryn looked up into those earnest gold eyes, and found that he felt far too much to get any of it into words. So he kissed Ceirin instead. And again, again, and again for the week he had spent sleeping alone, for all nights they hadn’t had sex because there was a baby who had needed care, and for how good it was to be home, to have this incredible husband, to finally have some time alone.

Ceirin was feeling it, too, because the fingers in Teldryn’s hair gripped tight and he leaned his head back with quiet groan.

Some attempt was made to get to the bedroom. 

They ended up under the dining room table instead.


End file.
